Shaftesbury Camera Club AGM 2022: Chairman’s Report

Our twelfth season has ended with a membership of 41 members – with 31 members having renewed their membership and 10 new members joining the Club.

After running all our meetings since March 2020 on Zoom, the hall re-opened in time for our current Season, and the Committee decided to return to meetings in the hall, albeit with the adoption of Covid protocols where appropriate. Social mixing is critical to the long-term success of any club, and it has been a significant factor in attracting a high number of new members this Season.

At the same time, we have provided Zoom access to our meetings to those members who preferred to remain at home. The technology involved in providing this option, along with the setting-up (and taking-down) for each of our meetings is considerable, and we are fortunate to have members with the knowledge and enthusiasm to enable us to achieve all this. Special thanks must go to Andy Heads for his dedication to operating our Zoom access throughout the Season, along with continually reminding the Chairman on how to use a microphone. As regards next season, however, the Committee has concluded that the time has come for a return to normal. We acknowledge that this will come as a disappointment to a few of our members, but we need to recognise that our future depends on high attendance at our meetings in the hall.

We will not, therefore, be continuing with an annual subscription to Zoom. In the event of an occasional presentation by a long-distance speaker, the Club will pay for a one-month subscription on Zoom. This may also be useful for short workshop courses, not forgetting that advice on a one-to-one basis is always available using free sessions.

Our field trips have continued to attract quite a few members, giving the opportunity for the practice and, hopefully, improvement of photographic skills. And our highly active group on Facebook continues to provide a means for the group members to share and enjoy their photography, whilst learning new skills and rising to the weekly challenges set by Jayne.

After a gap of 3 years, we were able to hold our Annual Exhibition, and it proved to be a great success with 117 high-quality prints entered by 22 members. Well over 300 visitors viewed the exhibition with many appreciative comments. Thanks are due to all those who provided stewarding, as well as to Richard Blake for transporting the display boards from and back to Blandford Forum Camera Club.

Our role as official photographers for the Gillingham & Shaftesbury Show proved to be highly-rewarding, with the organisers donating £800 to the Club. We have agreed to again act as the official photographers in August this year, and we will be needing several members to undertake the photography. With the show returning to the format of a one-day show on 17th August, we will need members to offer their services in return for free tickets and a free lunch. Further information is being emailed shortly to members.

As regards the Committee, Babs Johnson is stepping down as our secretary, having been in that role for 12 years since the Club was first formed. Our thanks must go to her at this time. We are hopeful that the Club will have a new secretary in time for our next season.

A reminder that the set subject for the annual Sherborne Bradford Abbas evening in the Autumn is ‘After Dark’. With the long summer evenings ahead of us, some late nights may be called for. But whatever you decide to do, enjoy your photography after two summers of lockdowns.

David Lampard, Chairman